1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved method of collecting blood of a newborn during delivery including a disposable, blood collection funnel for receiving umbilical cord blood and having multiple lower spouts for transferring collected blood to a plurality of blood collection tubes which may be used for further testing.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Immediately following the delivery of a newborn, it is essential to collect blood samples for laboratory analysis of the blood type, RH factor, and blood count of the newborn. In addition, other tests are needed to test blood clotting for additional cord bilirubin present, and if any particular medical concerns are present, blood may have to be tested for other specific problems as well.
Presently cord blood is collected with a glass beaker or drawn with a syringe. After the umbilical cord is cut and clamped. The doctor holds the cord over a medicine glass and unclamps one end of the cord to collect the blood. Pouring the blood from the cord into the medicine glass in this manner can be a difficult process, especially after the doctor or staff has just completed the delivery of a child after a prolonged labor. Spillage from the process is not uncommon and the container typically will have blood on the outside, increasing the possibility of blood contamination and increasing the likelihood of exposure of the hospital staff to the potentially infected blood, which is of primary concern to medical staff.
Another method used by doctors is to use a syringe and draw it out of a vein in the cord directly and plunging the blood into the medicine glass or appropriate container or collection tubes. One difficulty with this process is that the blood may become hemolyzed during this procedure. Also the unnecessary use of a syringe increases the possibility of accidental sticking a staff member with the syringe filled with blood. In addition, the use of a syringe for this process increases the amount of medical waste produced and increases the amount of time required for post birthing procedures thereby increasing the cost to the patient and insurers.
After the blood has been collected and placed into the medicine glass, it is then passed on to a scrub nurse and set on the instrument table for the circulating nurse to pour into blood collecting tubes. The tubes are color coordinated with a red top and purple top. The red top tube is used for blood typing and blood counting. The tube with the purple top is used for cord bilirubin tests.
All of this is occurring a very crucial time of delivery. After the umbilical cord has been cut, the infant is handed to the circulating curse to stabilize the infant. If the infant is not doing well, she is tied up taking care of the infant and the cord blood clots, as the blood clots very quickly if not handled immediately. Once the blood clots it is no longer satisfactory for the precise tests needed. Without the cord blood, then a blood specimen must to be taken after the delivery is finished from a vein in the placenta with a syringe. Most of the time this is not successful and it can be very messy and time consuming. If the specimen can't be obtained or a good specimen or not enough then the infant has to be suck for a specimen. This is of course disadvantageous for obvious reasons and dangers.
Additionally, if the container is bloody and the nurse didn't have time to don a pair of gloves then there is a chance of blood contamination or exposure. When the nurse pours the blood into the blood collecting tubes it may spill all over the tube resulting in blood contamination and further exposure to the nurse.
One such attempt to facilitate the collection of umbilical cord blood is U.S. Pat. No. 5,342,328 issued Aug. 30, 1994 to Grossman et al., which shows a container having an upper, closable container for receiving a clamped section of umbilical cord. The main chamber has an funnel portion for draining the blood from the unclamped cord into a tube which can be placed below and in communication with the chamber.
Published International Patent Application WO 91/16086 published Oct. 31, 1991 to Target Research Company shows a multi-compartment biological fluid specimen bag for collecting urine and other biological specimens for drug testing or other controlled substances.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.